Conlogue at home in U.S. Open of Surfing

Courtney Conlogue of Huntington Beach catches a wave during a training session in the water as she prepares for the 2013 U.S. Open of Surfing. Courtney's training before the big tournament consists of plenty of strength conditioning and getting adjusted to the local waters.KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

CONLOGUE TO BE HONORED

Courtney Conlogue will be honored as O.C. Female Surfer of the Year, an award presented by the Orange County Register, during the Surfers' Hall of Fame awards Friday at 10 a.m. in front of Huntington Surf and Sport on Main Street and Pacific Coast Highway.

HUNTINGTON BEACH – Two days before the start of this year's U.S. Open of Surfing, as the event's massive layout was still being constructed on the beach behind her, Courtney Conlogue sat on the dusty sand and studied the waves.

When ready for the afternoon's training session, she grabbed one of the three boards wedged in the sand in front of her and jogged toward the ocean. The board she picked was a fitting choice. Across its once plain white body, Conlogue had painted the cover art from the Dr. Seuss classic, "Oh, the Places You'll Go!"

Surfing has taken this 20-year-old places most don't see in a lifetime. Roughly three-quarters of her year is spent on the road, with competitions in the foreign waters of Brazil and Australia to those in New Zealand and France.

But for Conlogue, the biggest competition of the year offers a respite from airplanes and rental cars. Born and raised in Santa Ana, she needs no more than a 30-minute car ride to meet the rest of the world's top surfers just south of the Huntington Beach pier.

Conlogue is the top-ranked American and fourth in the Association of Surfing Professionals World Championship Tour standings entering the U.S. Open of Surfing, which for the women on the tour starts Tuesday at 10:30 a.m.

"There are events like (Bells Beach in Victoria, Australia) where the Aussies that live in Melbourne, they understand that wave inside out," Conlogue said. "That's what I try to apply here for myself at Huntington."

Conlogue, 5-foot-8 with streaked blonde hair, a freckled face and seemingly always a smile, has surfed at Huntington Beach too many times to even pinpoint a ballpark number ("I don't think you could count it on a hand; that's for sure," she jested.). It's her home surf.

The locale is of personal professional significance to Conlogue, as her U.S. Open win as a 16-year-old rising senior at the Sage Hill School remains one of her career highlights. That day was unforgettable. The waves were pumping. Surfing legend Kelly Slater gave her a high-five and told her, "You rip." Spectators carried her to the winner's podium

That triumph helped put Conlogue on the map. After fifth-place U.S. Open finishes the past two years and a 13th-place finish before that, Conlogue would certainly prefer on Sunday to see a result emulative of her 2009 victory, which would further her chances of becoming a world champion.

"Every year I really look forward to this event, having it in my backyard," she said. "I've been surfing here since I was like 5 years old. I've always loved surfing the pier, and having that home crowd is always really cool."

Conlogue first stood up on a surfboard during a two-week family vacation in Mexico when she was a mere 4 years old. Her father, Richard, a recreational surfer, taught her the basics. It wasn't until middle school when a newspaper gushed of one of her exploits that family outsiders knew of her secret wave-riding skills.

Now, everyone in the surfing world knows Conlogue.

Her success is not without years of a rigorous training regimen. In a sport often viewed as laid-back and one in which a surf-wear brand was recently accused of objectifying women in a YouTube advertisement, Conlogue is all business.

"There's a job to get done," said her mother, Tracey, who organizes all her travel and accompanies her on trips around the world. "There's a result to be made."

Conlogue is in the water every day for training sessions that last at least 90 minutes. Leading into competitions, she might be in the water three times a day. Her mom will sit in a small beach chair near the edge of the water and film the sessions with a 400-millimeter lens so Conlogue later can study the video.

Courtney Conlogue of Huntington Beach catches a wave during a training session in the water as she prepares for the 2013 U.S. Open of Surfing. Courtney's training before the big tournament consists of plenty of strength conditioning and getting adjusted to the local waters. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Courtney Conlogue of Huntington Beach catches a wave during a training session in the water as she prepares for the 2013 U.S. Open of Surfing. Courtney's training before the big tournament consists of plenty of strength conditioning and getting adjusted to the local waters. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Local surfer Courtney Conlogue uses her strength during a repetition stretch activity with trainer John Brown at the Extreme Athletics gym in Costa Mesa as she prepares for the 2013 US Open of Surfing. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Local surfer Courtney Conlogue, left, focuses on keeping her balance while trainer John Brown provides some resistance during her preparation for the U.S. Open of Surfing at the Extreme Athletics gym in Costa Mesa. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Local surfer Courtney Conlogue, left, stretches before a strength exercise session with trainer John Brown at Extreme Athletics in Costa Mesa as she prepares for the 2013 U.S. Open of Surfing. Conlogue stays active as possible when she isn't in the water and commends her training as a big asset to her preparation for the U.S. Open. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Local surfer Courtney Conlogue stretches with trainer John Brown during an exercise session at the Extreme Athletics gym in Costa Mesa. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Local surfer Courtney Conlogue, right, stretches with trainer John Brown during an exercise session at the Extreme Athletics gym in Costa Mesa. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Professional surfer Courtney Conlogue throws a medicine ball toward the wall during a strength exercise session at the Extreme Athletics gym in Costa Mesa. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Professional surfer Courtney Conlogue lifts exercise ropes during a strength session at the Extreme Athletics gym in Costa Mesa. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Professional surfer Courtney Conlogue enjoys her workout while lifting exercise ropes during a strength exercise session at the Extreme Athletics gym in Costa Mesa. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Courtney Conlogue of Huntington Beach leaps over a giant tire during an exercise routine at Extreme Athletics gym in Costa Mesa. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
A list of records at the Extreme Athletics gym in Costa Mesa lists local surfer Courtney Conlogue as the record-holder for most pushups in a minute. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Local surfer Courtney Conlogue, left, does pushups during an strength exercise session with trainer John Brown at the Extreme Athletics gym in Costa Mesa as she prepares for the 2013 US Open of Surfing. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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